The Will2Mill Era is in Effect Odds and Ends

KFAN: How much of that final 17 minutes [of the Jazz’s last Playoff game] was “Hey, you forgot about me and I’m proving to you what I could have brought?”

Ronnie Price: It was more ‘I hate the Lakers‘ and I wanted to…it was more about that. It had nothing to do with trying to prove a point to Coach or anything like that. I just like getting my name called and like being on the court and having a chance to compete, especially against a team I can’t stand.

Welcome back, Ronnie Price! [multiyear]

Welcome back, Memo! [three more years]

Welcome back, KK! [one more year]

Welcome back, Sap! [many more years]

Says Ronnie P: “Of course, I want to be here. I’m not a guy who likes to jump around the NBA much…For sure, I’m in this organization’s corner.” (desnews) / “The best situation would be staying here.” ; “We heard interest from other teams. It was good to know that other teams are interested, but our interest was to mainly stay here…I wanted to have the opportunity to stay here first.” (desnews)

Says Memo: “My wife loves living here. I love living here. It is a great place to raise a family. We’ve always been very proud to be a part of the Jazz family, and I love playing for coach Jerry Sloan and the entire staff. There was no reason to opt out. My goal since my arrival here has not changed in that I will do my best to be a part of a championship team, finish my career here, and hopefully have my number retired as one of the all-time Jazz player(s).” (desnews)

Says Memo’s agent, Marc Fleisher: “[Memo]’s quite happy both in Salt Lake and with the system and the team, and he never really wanted to leave. So, he didn’t opt out and he’s happy where he is.” (desnews)

Says KK: “I really like it here, I like the team, I love the city. It’s so much more than I thought I was getting into when I was first traded.” (KSL) / “I wanted to stay here, this is where I wanted to be. I would like to stay here for a long time. I enjoy playing here, I enjoy the team, I enjoy the city and the city’s been amazing to me since Day One…this is one of the best places there is to play…I was ready to announce quite a while ago that I wanted to stay for my last year…I would like to sign an extension to stay here, I would like to know this is where I’m going to be.” (1280 The Zone)

Says Sap: “Everything about Utah is a better situation for me and this ball club. I’m right where I want to be, back in Utah. I love it here and I can’t wait to get back on the court.” (sltrib)

1. Many Jazz blogs have done extensive, well-researched posts on potential Boozer trades. I have some ideas too:

–Boozer for 10 Russian spy novels
–Boozer for a secondhand John Deere tractor wheel or one free oil check (sorry, I’m a little behind on my tractor manual reading. Do tractors use oil?)
–Boozer for a 7-footer-sized Halloween costume
–Boozer for a new dress for Melisa Okur
–Boozer for a bag of chips (because he is not all that AND a bag of chips)

So after changing their tune for one or two days following FB’s Chicago radio interview, the Carlos Boozer Asskissing United Headquarters, aka 1320’s on-air personalities, are now back to their old tricks. They would have us believe that:

1) The fans drove Boozer away by ripping on him, and his behavior is therefore their fault
2a) There are no chemistry problems;
2b) If there are, the players don’t care about it.

In response to the first premise, the fans that spend money on tickets and team gear have every right to complain when players miss one out of every three games and only play on one side of the court when they do play, talk out of their ass, and refuse to even consider coming off the bench even if it could help their struggling team. It is not unrealistic for fans to expect their guys to play, play hard, and put team before individual. Say what you want about Karl Malone saying stupid things during offseasons, but you never had to wonder what you were going to get out of him or if he was giving it his all. He left it all on the court literally every single night for 18 years, and that’s why we could forgive him and overlook the things he sometimes said.

In response to the second premise, if there were no chemistry problems and/or the players didn’t care if there were, how do you explain the late season collapse? How do you explain the fact that the Jazz started sliding exactly at the time that Boozer got his 30+ minutes per game back? These 1320 guys are working on the assumption that all Jazz players are like Boozer and would air out their dirty laundry in public and shoot off their mouth at every given opportunity–which is a pretty big assumption if you ask me.

2. BBJ did a breakdown of FB’s Chicago radio interview (supposedly to promote his basketball camp in ALASKA) at SLC Dunk, so I won’t get into it. This is all I will say:

When asked about Boozer’s status, DWill simply said that he’s still a member of the Jazz, and that hopefully he is focused on winning a chip. When asked about his status, Boozer declared his love for Stinking Rose and how he would love to play for the Bulls (while at the same time decimating any leverage the Jazz might have in trying to trade him. Typical. What does he care about screwing the Jazz again?) That shows the difference between DWill and FB right there. Also, it’s interesting that FB refuses to speak to the Utah media, but will happily yap away to ESPN Chicago.

Go to Chicago, FB. Go to Chicago and be ashamed every time you see Jerry Sloan’s jersey hanging from the rafter above you, because Jerry Sloan is everything you are not. As for excited Bulls/Pistons/Heat/Knicks/whoever fans, I feel that this is a good time for another “The Princess Bride” quote:

So bow down to [him] if you want, bow to [him]. Bow to the [King] of Slime, the [King] of Filth, the [King] of Putrescence. Boo. Boo. Rubbish. Filth. Slime. Muck. Boo. Boo. Boo.

3. Odds and Ends:
–I know that a lot of fans hope that Matty retires, but don’t we kind of need him? Without him, we’re weak sauce head to toe. Our roster is largely soft or nonchalant. Matty is the only Tabasco bottle in the pantry.

–AK and Memo aren’t playing in Eurobasket. That just leaves KK2 (Greece), Suton/Tomic (Croatia), and Fes (Ukraine/relegation round). Somehow the whole tournament just lost a whole lot of luster.

–DWill’s golf tournament raised $50,000, which was donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in LHM’s name. Class act, and there is no doubt at all that the Utah Jazz is Deron Williams’ team.

–Poor Yao. Note how the Rockets’ team doctor is performing the surgery. With actual injuries, you don’t need to seek out multiple doctors in and out of state to find one that will cut into you. On a semi-related note, David Andersen = Pete Myers.

—This captures the fan’s offseason perfectly. The desperation for news and the constant “refreshing.” I wish I had someone to play NBA Scrabble with. (“What’s a six-letter word for ‘baby’?” “Lebron.” Hwa hwa hwa)

4. I opened this post with an awesome quote from Ronnie Price, and I’m closing it with some insight into Memo. In an interview with Memo’s website, Memo talked about:

–how he made concessions to stay with the Jazz:

However Greg Miller was very cautious and he stated that he only wanted to extend for two years. It was important for me to remain a Jazzman. So I gave up the the possibility of maybe one or maybe two year lengthier contract to stay with the Jazz.
…
So my attitude from the start was “If you want me here, I am not going to push, I am not going to demand but don’t kill me.”. They said they wanted me here, and after that the rest was not important, The numbers were not important.

–winning:

The only thing of real importance is winning a championship. To have a team that is capable of accomplishing that. So you put some personel goals and expectations aside.

Love the extension and length and dollar amount of the extention. Most of all, love his attitude–which makes me an even bigger Memo fan than before.